Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

Maurice Costello

 
Actor: Maurice Costello
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Feb 22, 1877 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Died: Oct 29, 1950 in Hollywood, California
  • Occupation: Actor, Director
  • Active: teens-'40s
  • Major Genres: Drama, Comedy
  • Career Highlights: Camille, Shamrock and the Rose, The Mysterious Lodger
  • First Major Screen Credit: Conscience (1912)

Biography

Though many have followed in his illustrious foot-steps, Maurice Costello, known as the "Dimpled Darling," was one of the first big Broadway stars to appear in movies. Prior to making the switch, he was a theatrical star for 15 years. In film, he first worked with Edison until 1908 when he began working for Vitagraph. Costello's best-known movie role was that of Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities. He continued playing leads through the mid-1920s when he became a character actor until he retired in the early 1940s. Occasionally, he directed his own films. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Search unanswered questions...

Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

Wikipedia: Maurice Costello
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Maurice Costello
Born February 22, 1877(1877-02-22)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Died October 28, 1950 (aged 73)
Hollywood, California
Occupation actor, director, screenwriter
Years active 1905 - 1945
Spouse(s) Mae Costello (1902-1927)
Ruth Reeves (1939-1941)

Maurice Costello (February 22, 1877 - October 28, 1950) was a prominent vaudeville actor of the late 1890s and early 1900s, who later played a principal role in early American films, as both a leading man, supporting player and a director.

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Irish immigrants Thomas Costello (born 1852) and Ellen Fitzgerald (born 1853), Costello appeared in his first motion picture in 1905, in which he had the honour of appearing in the very first film appearance of the legendary Sherlock Holmes in the movie Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, in which Costello played the title role. He then went to Vitagraph, being a member of the first motion picture stock company ever formed, playing opposite Florence Turner. Among some of his best known pictures are "A Tale of Two Cities," "The Man Who Couldn't Beat God" and "For the Honor of the Family." After an absence of some years he returned to the screen. He was married to actress Mae Costello (née Altschuk). His daughters were the actresses Dolores Costello and Helene Costello, grandson John Drew Barrymore, and great granddaughter Drew Barrymore. He was one of the world's first leading men in early American cinema, but sadly, like a lot of other silent screen stars, he found the transition to "talkies" extremely difficult, and his leading man status was over. However, Costello was a trooper, and continued to appear in movies, often in small roles and bit parts, right up until his death in 1950.

Costello died at the age 73 in 1950 in Los Angeles, California and was interred at Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles.

Selected filmography

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Actor. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Maurice Costello".  Read more